FINAL GIRL explores the slasher flicks of the '70s and '80s...and all the other horror movies I feel like talking about, too. This is life on the EDGE, so beware yon spoilers!

Jul 13, 2007

Friday the 13th Blog-A-Thon

Can you feel the kismet, people? All 'round Ye Olde Internette, people are talking about the Friday the 13th films and giving Jason Voorhees and Company some well-earned props. It's glorious in a sort of Hands Across America kind of way, don't you think? Though this endeavor was my idea, I had a really hard time coming up with something to say about these movies. I reviewed all the Friday films during that ridiculous, ass-numbing marathon; I've talked about the awesome coffee table book dedicated to the series; Friday films have been mentioned here for ridiculous faces, various death scenes, the general badassery of Jason, and defenestrationsgalore. What else can I possibly say? I'll say what I can possibly say: Baghead Jason of Friday the 13th Part 2 is the most frightening and effective of any Jason in any of the Friday films.

There's obviously something frightening about later incarnations of Jason- the hulking, hockey-masked killing machine. But Baghead Jason isn't a hulking killing machine who's brought back to life time and again, an ooey-gooey corpse of unlimited powers. Baghead Jason, you see, is just some guy. He's a real human being who wears a bag on his head and will kill you. Like Michael Myers, he's a boogeyman. He's the type of legend kids talk about- the madman who lives in the woods, the deformed monster who's waiting for kids to wander too close so he can snatch them up and bake them into a pie or something. When I was young, there was a wooded expanse across the street from our house and all the neighborhood kids would head into there to play. There were bike trails and rocks to climb...and it was rumored that there was some crazy guy who lived somewhere in there, just like Jason. Let me tell you, the idea of it made hide and seek an exceptionally thrilling game to play. I think it's safe to say that the rotting zombified Jason of Part VIII isn't someone we're likely to encounter outside the confines of a TV or movie screen; but Baghead Jason? I'm still partially convinced that a guy just like him really did wander the woods of southeastern Connecticut. Baghead Jason is real.

Looking at the character in Part 2, it's kind of amazing that he'd go on to death and resurrection countless times over, becoming a sort of perverse Superman. In Part 2, Jason had a house. He had somewhere to live, a little lean-to that he built himself...a shack that had a toilet. He clearly loved his mother and was so traumatized by her death that he built a shrine to her- he even lit candles. He was so full of rage that he left the confines of Camp Crystal Lake and somehow tracked down Alice, the counselor who killed his mother; he brought his mom's head all the way to Alice's apartment as he sought revenge. Couple these very human (and yes, very insane) actions with The Ginny Theory- that being that Jason never drowned in Crystal Lake, but rather ran off into the woods to live his kooky lifestyle- and there's actually some...GASP...character development for Jason Voorhees. The smallest sliver of our brains might even be dedicated to feeling sorry for the guy.

In Part 3, Jason would go on to adopt the hockey mask and cement his standing as a horror icon. Never again, however, would he seem so real- and to me, he'd never again seem so frightening, either.

All right, I've said my piece. Now it's time to spread the wealth! I'm sure I'll be updating throughout the day, so check back often for all things Friday the 13th.

Here they are...all the kills from the Friday the 13th films in chronological order. Thanks to everyone who threw this mind-numbing piece my way!

Well, I think that about wraps it up. Thanks SO MUCH to everyone who participated for making this event a heeee-youuuuge success. After all, you can't spell "Blog-A-Thon" without "you". Let's do this again sometime, shall we?

I wish I had my review of Jason Goes to Hell handy. Though I hated just about as much as the others, it at least had two funny bits in it: the diner that served hockey mask shaped hamburgers and the final punchline of who pulls him into hell. In fact, that was one of the few times I didn't pick a Friday the 13th movie for the worst of a year, that year Hulk Hogan's Mr. Nanny took that dubious honor.

I didn't do anything, but I thought people should know you can get the mp3s of the Friday the 13th theme from Part 2 as well as the sweet disco version from Part 3 at Harry Manfredini's website for free.

Thanks for giving some love to Friday the 13th Part 2! Bag Head Jason might be the George Lazenby of the Friday series thanks to his one film appearence but it's still my favorite incarnation of Jason.